No quick fixes for Indo-Pak issues: Qureshi

As he prepares to meet External Affairs Minister S M Krishna in July, Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi has said 'nothing dramatic' should be expected from 'one sitting' and emphasised that the dialogue process should be made 'irreversible'.

Qureshi, who along with Krishna has been tasked to bridge the trust deficit, said mutual suspicions were the main reason for the trust gap and the two countries should work towards removing those.

He told PTI in an interview that he will make some suggestions to Krishna for reducing the trust deficit but refused to divulge details.

Noting that many of the Indo-Pak issues are long outstanding, he said, "We have to understand and realise that in one sitting, which is on July 15, nothing dramatic is going to happen. We are not magicians."

Qureshi contended, "We will do our best to create an enabling environment so that we can gradually proceed towards what we want to achieve. What we do want to achieve -- peace, economic development, prosperity of our people and stability" in the region.

"This is a process. It is a long haul. There are no quick fixes. There are no easy solutions," he underlined.

Qureshi said he was 'very positive' and viewed as 'a big step forward' Krishna's scheduled trip to Islamabad which will follow the visits by Home Minister P Chidambaram and Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao.

"The positive thing is that the leadership on both sides has recognised the fact that dialogue is the only way forward. This realisation led to resumption (of dialogue)," he said.

Describing increased interaction as valuable, he said the dialogue process should go on and the two countries should take it to "such an extent that it becomes irreversible."

He noted that prime ministers Manmohan Singh and Yusuf Raza Gilani have given the mandate to him and Krishna to create an 'enabling environment' and 'suggest steps to build confidence' and take measures that will narrow the trust deficit.

Dr Singh and Gilani, during their meeting on April 29 in Thimphu, decided that the foreign ministers of the two countries will meet to discuss ways to reduce the trust deficit which is essential for improvement of relations.

"How can we reduce it? We can reduce it by engaging, by understanding, by listening to each other, by sitting together. The more frequently we meet across the board, I think the more chances are that the suspicion levels will gradually start going down," he emphasised.